Security Systems News - Jason Grellehttp://www.securitysystemsnews.com/taxonomy/term/4382
enAlarm Capital Alliance expands in Georgiahttp://www.securitysystemsnews.com/article/alarm-capital-alliance-expands-georgia
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<div class="field-item even">Pennsylvania-based ACA adds to its Atlanta base with backyard buy</div>
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<div class="field-item even" property="schema:datePublished dc:date"><span class="date-display-single" property="schema:datePublished dc:date" datatype="xsd:dateTime" content="2014-09-19T00:00:00-04:00">09/19/2014</span></div>
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<div class="field-item even" rel="schema:author dc:creator">Tess Nacelewicz</div>
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<div class="field-item even" property="schema:articleBody content:encoded"> <p>NEWTOWN SQUARE, Pa.—Alarm Capital Alliance acquired more than 1,200 accounts from Bulldog Security Services of Dacula, Ga., strengthening ACA’s position in the Atlanta area.</p>
<p>“It expanded our coverage of that market geographically a little bit, as well as adding to the customer base,” Jason Grelle, ACA VP of business development, told Security Systems News.</p>
<p>ACA, which is based here, says its has more than 20,000 accounts in Georgia, and more than 170,000 customers nationwide.</p>
<p>Grelle declined to say how much RMR was involved, but said it was “a great transaction” that took only about a month from start to finish.</p>
<p>Bulldog had been active in the Atlanta market since 2004 and Grelle said it had a “seasoned customer base” that was about 80 percent residential.</p>
<p>“It’s a very similar account base to what we have here currently. So it was a very nice fit for us,” Grelle said.</p>
<p>A Bulldog technician will be joining ACA “and we’ll be covering service [of the new accounts] out of our branch there,” he said.</p>
<p>He added, “We will probably maintain the Bulldog name on [the accounts] for some time.”</p>
<p>Grelle said that ACA has an opportunity to upgrade many of the new accounts. While Bulldog offered GSM and interactive services, it may not have actively solicited longtime customers about such additions, he said.</p>
<p>“Some of the older accounts may not have some of those features, so when we bring them into the fold, we continually will send out newsletters and bill statements about different types of features that can be added,” Grelle explained. “So I would anticipate a lot of these customers adding additional services on top of what traditional burglar services they currently have.”</p>
<p>Drue Thomas, ACA acquisitions manager, coordinated the acquisition. Assisting Jones in the sale of Bulldog was Steve Rubin, of Long Grove, Ill.-based Davis Mergers and Acquisitions Group.</p> </div>
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<span property="dc:title" content="Alarm Capital Alliance expands in Georgia" class="rdf-meta element-hidden"></span>Fri, 19 Sep 2014 17:06:34 +0000Leif Kothe17806 at http://www.securitysystemsnews.comhttp://www.securitysystemsnews.com/article/alarm-capital-alliance-expands-georgia#commentsSAFE moves central station, boosts dealer programhttp://www.securitysystemsnews.com/article/safe-moves-central-station-boosts-dealer-program
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<div class="field-item even"> Company aims to improve efficiencies with shift to corporate headquarters</div>
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<div class="field-item even" property="schema:datePublished dc:date"><span class="date-display-single" property="schema:datePublished dc:date" datatype="xsd:dateTime" content="2012-04-18T00:00:00-04:00">04/18/2012</span></div>
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<div class="field-item even" rel="schema:author dc:creator">Rich Miller</div>
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<div class="field-item even" property="schema:articleBody content:encoded"> <p>SAN RAMON, Calif.—SAFE Security has moved its central station to its corporate office here, updating its monitoring technology in the process and bolstering its dealer program to take advantage of the upgrade.</p>
<p>SAFE, a full-service alarm company founded in 1988, had been monitoring accounts from a central station in San Mateo, COO Randy Perkins told <em>Security Systems News</em>. Before acquiring that facility three years ago in the California Security deal, SAFE used wholesale sites for its monitoring.</p>
<p>The move in late February to San Ramon “basically allowed us to build a state-of-the-art central station,” Perkins said. “It allowed us to put in some new equipment, upgrade everything, gain some economies of scale, and provide better customer service by being in one location as opposed to being in two.”</p>
<p>The 3,500-square-foot, UL-approved central station uses SGS’ Stages redundant monitoring system and a fully integrated Tadiran phone switch, Perkins said. The upgrade extends to the work environment for operators, with new equipment to help improve efficiency and reduce training time.</p>
<p>“There are new computers, monitors, the whole nine yards,” he said. “[We’ve] upgraded workstations, upgraded software and added new servers.”</p>
<p>Paul Sargenti, president and CEO of SAFE Security, called the changes “seamless” for the company’s subscribers and said the improvements position it well for expansion.</p>
<p>“The central station move not only improves efficiencies, but allows a capacity for growth we would not have been able to maintain in the old facility,” he said in a prepared statement.</p>
<p>The company used the transition to San Ramon to help launch the SAFE Dealer Network, which was announced on April 6. The network builds on the company’s existing program for about 40 dealers that it services nationwide, Perkins said.</p>
<p>“We brought in Jason Grelle [new VP of sales and marketing] and a sales force for support,” Perkins said. “We have a new field team to support dealers, whereas we didn’t really have that before. Obviously we all went out and visited dealers, but this is a more formal structure.”</p>
<p>Perkins said SAFE’s approach includes the bulk acquisition of accounts, wholesale monitoring, funding, billing and collecting, and servicing of dealer contracts.</p>
<p>“We’re not just purchasing accounts with competitive multiples in the range of the other guys that are out there,” he said. “We also do co-branding, which is different from many others.”</p>
<p>Perkins said SAFE will continue to build its dealer program throughout 2012 and is actively looking for acquisitions.</p>
<p>“We’re going to do a number of large deals this year,” he said.</p> </div>
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<span property="dc:title" content="SAFE moves central station, boosts dealer program" class="rdf-meta element-hidden"></span>Wed, 18 Apr 2012 17:25:16 +0000Tess Nacelewicz15348 at http://www.securitysystemsnews.comhttp://www.securitysystemsnews.com/article/safe-moves-central-station-boosts-dealer-program#comments